Today's College Football Thread

[fishwax]

There's only one game between ranked teams today, but it's an important one for the BCS picture: South Carolina plays at Florida, and the Gators need to win out and then beat Alabama in the SEC Championship Game to clinch a spot in the BCS Championship Game. Alabama, meanwhile, in in the same boat: they've clinched a spot in the SEC Championship Game, but they need to beat Mississippi State this week to keep their national title hopes alive.

Two of the other BCS contenders--Texas Tech and Oklahoma--have the week off, but they play each other next week in what promises to be an outstanding game. Texas plays Kansas today, and they need to win in the cold at Lawrence to stay in the running for both the Big 12 South and the BCS Championship Game. USC still has an outside shot, but they first have to get revenge for last year's loss to Stanford, in one of the biggest upsets in college football history.

Those are the games with national implications, but there are plenty of games on tap with conference title implications as well.

So what games are you looking forward to today?

[fishwax]

1. The race in the ACC is close to chaos

Out of 6 teams in each division, only Duke in the Coastal Division and NC State and Clemson in the Atlantic Division are out of the running. Miami beat Virginia Tech on Thursday, and so they can win the Coastal Division if they win out and North Carolina loses one of their games.

Some of today's games should help clarify the situation in the ACC, at least a little bit:

North Carolina at Maryland: UNC controls their own destiny in the Coastal division. If they lose today, that puts Miami in the driver's seat. Maryland controls their own destiny in the Atlantic Division. If they lose today, Wake Forest is in the driver's seat.

Wake Forest at NC State: NC State is out of it, but Wake Forest is one of three teams in the Atlantic Division with two conference losses. They hold the tiebreaker over Florida State but not Maryland.

Boston College at Florida State--Even though they have three conference losses, Boston College still technically controls their own destiny, since the remaining games are all against the three teams ahead of them in the Atlantic Division, each of which has two losses. If BC wins out, they'll be in the championship game. If they lose today, they're likely out of it. Florida State lost the head-to-head matchup with Wake Forest, so they've got to win out and hope for a Wake Forest loss.

[TZ]

2. Yep.

I like that everyone thinks NC is gonna win today..and the fact that "bad" Maryland showed up last week so hopefully they will play better today....

[fishwax]

4. I think that should be a good game today

I just realized earlier this week that both of North Carolina's losses were only by a field goal, and one of those was in overtime. They've really had a great season. But Maryland is undefeated at home this year, and as you said the good Maryland is due to make an appearance :)

[TZ]

29. Good Maryland showed up!

And Wake lost...Hopefully BC beats FSU tonight and then...MD will have the inside track to the Atlantic title...:woohoo:

[madinmaryland]

31. ACC is pretty weak this year, if Maryland is in contention to win a title!

I guess the NCAA is obligated to have an ACC team in teh BCS.

:shrug:

[TZ]

32. PFFFT!

Not any weaker than the PAC-10 which several ACC teams took out several from that conference (including Maryland beating a decent Cal team)

[madinmaryland]

56. The PAC-10 are lightweights too! Let's talk BIG-10!!1!!

GO BUCKEYES!!!!

[TZ]

66. yeah....sure

I wouldn't be so big on the Big10 either..I hate to say this but as bad as Michigan is..I could see them beating OSU next week...

[fishwax]

3. The Big 10 race is down to three teams

Penn State controls their own destiny. They have to beat Indiana today and Michigan State next week to clinch a spot in the Rose Bowl. At halftime, they're ahead of Indiana 10-7.

Ohio State is tied with Penn State with one conference loss, but since that loss was to PSU they lose the tiebreaker. They need to beat Illinois today and Michigan in two weeks, plus have Penn State lose one of the next two games. At halftime, they're ahead of Illinois 23-13.

Michigan State also has one conference loss, to Ohio State. They have this week off, and can earn a spot in the Rose Bowl if (a) they beat Penn State next week and (b) Ohio State loses to either Illinois or Michigan.

[fishwax]

5. 5 of the 8 teams in the Big East still have a shot

Three teams are tied with 1 conference loss: Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and West Virginia. Cincinnati and Pitt control their own destiny: they play each other next week and the winner will be conference champion if they win their other games. West Virginia already lost to Cincy, so they need to win out (including a win over Pitt) and hope for a Bearcat loss. None of those teams are playing today.

There are also two teams one game back with 2 conference losses--UConn and Rutgers. Rutgers plays at South Florida today (they're up 28-17 right now) and UConn plays at Syracuse tonight.

[tigereye]

24. I bought tix for the kid and I to see the Pitt-WVU game

should be interesting, esp. after last year's surprise win! (note, I'm a PItt alum.)

[fishwax]

6. Georgia and Auburn are close halfway through the 4th quarter

Right now Georgia leads 17-13 with 6:40 left in the game, but Auburn has the ball in Georgia territory ...

[pinstikfartherin]

60. Pfftt..

Typical Auburn to screw up in the end. (Yes, I'm an Auburn fan)

Guess we'll have to see if by a miracle they beat Alabama in the Iron Bowl.

[fishwax]

64. boy, they were ever so close

I thought they were going to pull it out for sure--exciting end, though ...

[CatholicEdHead]

7. Gophers over Badgers today

[fishwax]

12. for my favorite of the rivalry trophies

Paul Bunyan's Axe:

[fishnfla]

30. not

[Tom Kitten]

8. Beavers and Bears on TV soon

If OSU wins they still control their own fate in the run for the Rose Bowl...Cal will be looking for last year when they could have moved to #1 in the polls with a win but OSU won in a great come from behind thriller.

[fishwax]

10. Wow, both teams have touchdowns already

I just flipped over to that game and it's already 7-7 with less than four minutes gone ... how'd that happen?

[Tom Kitten]

15. Cal ran opening KO 51 yds.

Beaver's kicker only person to beat, grabbed facemask, 15 more yds. Cal scores in 3 plays. Beavers James Rogers took Cal KO, ran it back 86 yds. for TD! All in like the first 1:30.

[fishwax]

16. Dang! I missed an exciting start

:wow:

[fishwax]

18. Beavers almost got another special teams touchdown

Wow, that was a nice return!

[Tom Kitten]

21. 17-7, Beavs

This is going better than I expected! Beaver defense is tough! Oops, spoke to soon, Cal completes 35 yd. pass...(on edit) TD Bears! 17-14...

[fishwax]

9. I think 6 teams are still alive in the PAC 10, and they’re all playing each other today

California at Oregon State
Oregon State, with one conference loss, controls its own destiny by virtue of the head-to-head victory over USC, the other team with one conference loss. Win the rest of their games and they win the conference.

Cal is one of three teams with two losses, so they need to win today to stay in contention for the Rose Bowl. This is also a revenge game for the Bears, who were ranked #2 when they got beat by the Beavers last year.

USC at Stanford
USC is tied for the conference lead with one loss, but that loss was to Oregon State, so they need to win out and have Oregon State lose to win the conference. This is a revenge game for USC—last year’s loss (at home) to Stanford was one of the biggest upsets ever in college football, and cost USC a shot at the national title.

I think Stanford is still technically alive in the Pac 10 race, but with 3 conference losses it’s an extremely long shot. If they win out, they will hold the head-to-head advantage against Oregon State and Arizona (both of whom they beat earlier this year) as well as USC and Cal (who they’ll have to beat to win out); they lost to Oregon, though, so Stanford would need several teams tied at 3 losses.

Arizona at Oregon
Arizona and Oregon both have two conference losses, so they need to win today to keep their Rose Bowl hopes alive.

[crimsonblue]

11. Effing KU

I swear. This is the reason I am a freaking basketball fan.

[fishwax]

13. Had a couple of chances today

I thought they might be on their way back when they were down 21-7 and started moving the ball, but just not a lot of offense today ...

[crimsonblue]

17. KU needs a new Offensive Coordinator

I'm getting sick and freaking tired of the BS scripts they run to start every half, not to mention their wonderful ability of abandoning what works.

[ironflange]

68. Face it, last season was a fluke

KU is back to its old underachieving ways. They still have to tangle with OK and MO, too.

[Writer]

14. Well, Texas cleaned-up versus Kansas...

but next week's game between Oklahoma and Texas Tech will be one to watch!

(I'll be rooting for Oklahoma. I feel dirty already. ;))

BTW: Apparently Swoops has lost only two home games during his entire tenure as Oklahoma's head coach. We'll see what happens.

[fishwax]

20. Should be a good game, and could make for an interesting finish in the Big 12 south

OU always plays Tech well in Norman, but then again this is the first year Tech has really had a defense that could stop people. I'm far from confident that OU will win, but if they do, it sets up the three-way tie. What chaos that could be :wow:

[Writer]

22. I don't think Tech has been consistent enough outside of Lubbock...

so I'm up-in-the-air about who'll win. I think they both have a chance, but it seems that Oklahoma has an excellent home field advantage.

The Big 12 south, by far is the toughest conference in the NCAA. No doubt. Some of the strongest offenses in the country, at least.

Next week will be fun to watch... if it's a three-way tie Texas has a very good chance of getting the nod for the Big 12 Champ. game. So far they have the "best" loss and lead in the computer rankings for one-loss teams.

[fishwax]

19. South Carolina isn't exactly making things hard for Florida

Three turnovers in the first quarter, all resulting in touchdowns. One interception was returned for a touchdown, another interception set up a 26-yard touchdown drive, and then a fumble on the ensuing kickoff gave Florida the ball on the SC 1-yard line. They scored three plays later to go up 21-0.

[RoyGBiv]

27. Yeah, this is a trainwreck ...

Have there been any good games today?

If so, I've missed them.

[tigereye]

23. so Fishwax, what's the deal with Ball State?

How the hell did they make it into the top 20?


Was it Letterman money, or what? ;)

[fishwax]

25. haha -- that and their weak schedule

;) the only team they've beaten with a winning record is Navy. But their next two games are against Central and Western Michigan, who are both 8-2, so we'll see if they can hold up.

Still, I'm happy for them--they've never been ranked in the history of the AP poll before this year :)

[tigereye]

26. but why are they ranked at all, given that kind of schedule?

[fishwax]

35. well, weak schedule or not, they are undefeated

and there aren't a lot of teams left that can say that. :)

[Ptah]

28. Ouch. Less than two minutes into the game.

Arizona 0
Oregon 14

:cry:

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[insanity]

34. Oregon State Outlasts Cal!

Excellent game. Our defense did the job today. If we win against Arizona and Oregon we are going to the Rose Bowl. If Stanford can win with Oregon today, our chances are even better.

[fishwax]

36. That was a fun game

I didn't get to watch it all, but what I saw was exciting. Congrats to the Beavers :toast:

[Twillig]

37. I saw this shirt at the Beav's game today

It wasn't being worn by the Design student that has posted this on the interweb. T'was worn by a dude to whom I gave a thumbs up.

He said, "Lot of big wins we've been having lately." :-) Then He got a High Five from a student.

In other fashion news the Dux and Nike have put this steaming pile out there for your consideration:



The Ducks are blowing up the 'cats. Well, ok. Maybe that will give 'Zona a reason to quit and not fight next week. :-) (against the Beavs)

[Tom Kitten]

38. Halftime: Oregon 45 Arizona 17

Meanwhile Beavs win 34-21! Next week Arizona , then the Ducks!

[SeattleGirl]

39. w00t!

Wish the damn game was on TV, but at least I can follow the plays and scoring on my computer.

[Tom Kitten]

42. I don't understand it

What with all the good matchups in the Pac-10 today, FSN decided to go with Washington-UCLA? Neither of those teams are going anywhere. UCLA is 3-6, and the Huskies are 0-9.

[SeattleGirl]

43. Because Neuheisel is coaching UCLA, and it's his first

time back at Husky Stadium since he totally and completely trashed the Husky football team.

Guess they figured that would be the highlight of Pac-10 football today. :eyes:

(P.S. I'm not a Husky fan, but I do hope the fans in the stadium boo the hell out of Neuheisel!)

[Tom Kitten]

48. I kinda figured

But gee! Even if you were a Husky fan, would you admit it? My final 2 years of college were at OSU (first 2 at Oregon)and it was during the Avezzano era. They finally won a game I think my second year there (against Stanford 33-19, I remember it) and the fanswere so excited they tore down the goal posts and carried them to the middle of the Quad, where the let them stay for a few days. For winning a game!

[SeattleGirl]

49. Football fans are a crazy lot, aren't they?

I love football, but joining a group of people trying to tear down goal posts isn't something I wouldn't want to participate in. :)

[Tom Kitten]

54. They don't allow it anymore

Ever since the posts fell and badly injured a female fan several years ago. Plus it costs money to have them replaced and colleges are very keen on charging students for whatever damage they do to their facilities.

[SeattleGirl]

55. Good idea.

Celebrating is one thing; doing something that can really harm or kill someone is something else altogether.

[Ptah]

46. Ouch!

[SeattleGirl]

50. Uh oh. Arizona is sneaking up on Oregon. It's now 48-32 Ducks

at the beginning of the 4th quarter.

[Tom Kitten]

51. Wow! 48-45 now...

This is an incredible comeback! If the Cats pull it out, maybe the biggest ever? Eat your hearts out, FSN!!!

[Ptah]

52. 48 - 45

Bear Down Arizona!

[SeattleGirl]

53. NOOOOOOOO!

Come on, Ducks!!!!!

[SeattleGirl]

57. 55-45, Ducks over Arizona, with 3:25 left in the forth.

:bounce: :bounce:

[Ptah]

59. .

:cry:

[Tom Kitten]

63. Ducks win 55-45

Other than winning I don't see much to celebrate. Did the defense start taking showers at halftime? I hope the Beavers were able to watch this game and learn a few more things about their next two opponents. I want to see Oregon State in the Rose Bowl so bad!

[fishwax]

40. Stanford and USC tied at halftime: 17-17

[Awsi Dooger]

41. Classic example of Home Fury of Anti-Revenge

I've mentioned that angle many times on DU, primarily in the Sports forum. When a team wins a high profile emotional game on the road, then hosts the next meeting between the two teams, the energy and intensity edge is massively in favor of the home team, in Anti-Revenge mode. Remember, this is the game in which Stanford upset USC as a 41 point underdog last year, the biggest pointspread upset in college football history.

That aspect gave this game special Fury of Anti-Revenge significance. I knew for 12 months that I would bet on Stanford at home in the first half of this year's rematch. They responded by being every bit as excited as I expected, controlling the first half as a 24 point underdog. I had +14 in the first half.

But in the second half the energy advantage typically wears out and the true relationship of the two teams comes to the forefront.

[fishwax]

44. Good call on that

[fishwax]

45. Troy State 17, LSU 3

10 minutes left in the 2nd quarter.

(This is the game that was postponed earlier in the year because of the hurricane.)

[pinstikfartherin]

61. Troy 24, LSU 3!!

Go Troy!

[GOPisEvil]

47. I don't want to talk about it.

x(

[fishwax]

58. oh my

who would ever imagine Aggie fans would be so excited to have basketball season here ...

[GOPisEvil]

62. Eh, it'll get better. And, it could be worse.

At least we're not the Washington teams. Those teams are much worse. At least A&M will win 4 games this year.

But getting smoked by Baylor just hurts. Good thing I have plans for Thanksgiving so I don't have to watch Texas destroy us.

[fishwax]

65. true--the situation in Washington is horrible

The Apple Cup this year will likely be the only win either team gets against an FBS school. Oklahoma has scored more points in the last three games than either team has scored all year. Heck, OU has scored more in the *first half* of the last three games then either team has scored all season.

Franchione clearly left that program in pretty bad shape, but they'll get better ...

[greatauntoftriplets]

67. Northwestern beat Michigan!!!!

:fistbump:

[Maccagirl]

70. YEEEES!

Now my Buckeyes have to get the job done next week.

[underpants]

69. WHY is Florida State on primetime network TV

oh that's right they have some new uniforms to sell and St.Bobby has a new jacket to market